Chapter 1 - Empress (Part 1)
Shiki ran away from Karin and quickly climbed the stairs to her classroom on the third floor.
This wasn't just her classroom, but also the hellish place where a group of delinquents were waiting to torment her.
He arrived at the classroom and approached three boys sitting behind the window.
Kawato, a blond delinquent who was casually sitting in his chair, watched with a sharp look and said irritably, "Who would have thought that I'd have to wait more than twice the time limit. You even dare to underestimate me at a time like this."
"Ah... I'm sorry..." Shiki's regretful voice could be heard.
"Oh, such a shame, hahaa... you made Kawato angry, didn't you, Orifushi-kun?"
"Ahaha, is this going to be a punch in the stomach?"
Two of his cronies interjected with deliberately provocative remarks.
"Oh? You're late and you didn't even apologize?"
Kawato stood up with a creak that made Shiki tremble.
His intimidating gaze from a height of almost 10 centimeters was truly frightening.
"No... I apologized, but they both interrupted me..."
"Eh, hey, is it our fault?"
"Yes, it's all your fault, Orifushi-kun."
"That's not..."
"That's enough."
With Kawato's statement, both Shiki and the two individuals fell silent.
"You're late and you didn't even apologize. In that case, it means there will be two punishments for this, right?"
"W-Wait... hufftt!?"
As if disregarding any protests, the blow landed on Shiki's stomach, turning him intended words of objection into a strange gasp.
"And here's the second!"
As announced, the second strike pierced Shiki's stomach once more.
As expected, in a school full of delinquents, even his classmates were delinquents, so no one would intervene in situations like this. Even non-delinquent students avoided drawing attention to themselves by getting involved for fear of becoming targets of bullying as well.
No one even looked at Shiki, who was being intimidated.
He wanted to grab him belly and crouch down, but if he showed too much pain, it would only displease Kawato even more and possibly lead to additional punishment. So he forced himself to endure the pain, even if it meant going against his instincts.
"Wow, you're really tough, Orifushi-kun."
"Yeah, all thanks to Kawato's perfectly calibrated strength, right?"
After being asked by his cronies to agree, Kawato smiled arrogantly and nodded.
"Yes, that's right. We don't want to hurt him too much and draw attention away from 'Jo-tei', that would be annoying," Kawato said while laughing happily, even though he said "not funny" or something like that.
Shiki, who felt pain in his stomach from the blows, could not understand what was so amusing about this situation.
Kawato opened the lid of the oolong tea can, took a sip and suddenly asked a belated question.
"So why were you late?"
"Uh... I almost collided with 'Jo-tei' as Kawato-kun mentioned earlier..."
Upon hearing this, both of his cronies let out a pitiful voice together.
"Wait... did you rat us out to 'Jo-tei' for bullying you?"
"Hey! This is bad, right?"
"Calm down, you two."
They fell silent at Kawato's words.
"Think about it. Do you really think that coward Orifushi can have a normal conversation with 'Jo-tei'? And we just used him as a tool to do some dirty work. That's all, it's not unusual in this school, right?"
"Y-yeah, that's true..."
"Kawato is right, it's nothing to be afraid of."
After hearing Kawato's words, the two of them felt relieved at the same time.
It has become common knowledge that Kohinata Karin, known as "Jo-tei," is someone with a "heroic" nature who helps the weak and oppresses the strong. Therefore, Kawato and his two cronies who bully Shiki would undoubtedly be categorized as "disliked individuals" by her.
With this realization, the two of them feel relieved and their reactions coincide for the third time in a row.
Meanwhile, the bell rings to signal the end of recess, and Kawato lets out a click of his tongue before ordering Shiki to "get lost" with a gesture similar to shooing away a dog.
The reason why even delinquents like them still attend classes properly is largely due to the influence of the formidable "Jo-tei", although it's not a topic to be discussed.
Shiki feels relieved to be free of the torment and returns to his seat.
Even during the lessons, the intimidation of Kawato and his two lackeys doesn't go that far.
Even when they resort to violence, the blows they deliver are restrained enough not to cause serious damage. It's all thanks to Karin's leadership in the school.
Shiki also admits that he should be at least a little grateful to Karin.
However, he feels more fear and intimidation than gratitude towards Karin, who is so strong in the fights in this famous delinquent school.
This fear prevents him from even asking Karin for help, as mentioned by Kawato's cronies.
Despite being so afraid of Karin, Shiki couldn't help but think, "I don't want to involve others in my bullying" or "If it's a girl, even more so". He realized that he had an uncontrollable nature.
(But there's no other way. It's just the way I am...)
He mumbled to himself, as if he wanted to change his attitude.
Shiki felt that the reason he ended up in this situation, being forced to enroll in St. Lucimantz High School and becoming a target of Kawato and his friends, was because of his own nature.
On the day of the entrance exam for his first-choice public high school, although Shiki arrived early, he was delayed because he had to help an elderly woman who was struggling to climb the steps of a pedestrian bridge, and he also had to help find the parents of a lost child. As a result, he ended up being very late and unable to take the exams for several subjects, which ultimately led to his failure.
On the entrance exam days for his second and third choice private high schools, he was also late for the same reasons, and as usual, he couldn't take the exams for some subjects and ended up failing.
Only on the day of the entrance exam for St. Lucimantz High School, as his last resort, he miraculously didn't meet anyone who needed help, which allowed him to pass the exam and unfortunately enter St. Lucimantz High School.
But if Shiki had just focused on his studies and not intervened, he wouldn't have become the target of Kawato and his friends' bullying. So,
After entering school, Shiki happened to witness Kawato and his two followers bullying a classmate. His sense of justice surfaced, causing him to forget that he was just a herbivorous creature in this school and instead defend the bullied student.
As a result of his actions, he earned their displeasure, and since then, Shiki has become a constant toy for Kawato and his friends.
To make matters worse, the student he defended eventually transferred to another school due to fears for the school's safety, leaving Shiki feeling even more helpless. And since he didn't want to worry his parents, he ruled out the possibility of changing schools, thus trapping himself even more.
At that time, before Karin became known as "Jo-tei," she often intervened when she witnessed delinquents bullying weaker students. Kawato and his friends, who correctly understood the threat of "Jo-tei," deliberately avoided engaging in violent acts that would seriously harm Shiki, such as destroying personal belongings, theft, or extortion, which would worsen the bullying situation himself.
Instead, their methods of intimidation gradually evolved into more insidious forms over time, never breaking the hierarchical structure among the delinquents. Shiki hoped to escape this hellish situation by moving up to a higher grade or changing classes, but unfortunately, in the second year, Kawato and even his two friends ended up in the same class.
(There's no way, right? There's no way I'm going to be in the same class as that idiot Kawato and the others until the third year, is there?)
In an effort to shake off the worst thoughts that had inadvertently crossed his mind, Shiki gently shook his head. He really did not want to imagine such a future.
Meanwhile, the teacher arrived and the second lesson began.
To be honest, Shiki didn't really enjoy the lessons, but at least he didn't have to worry about Kawato and his friends, so these fifty minutes were nothing but a moment of relaxation for him.
After that, during every recess, he endured the role of lackey and witnessed violence disguised as "games," but somehow managed to make it through until the final bell rang.
Kawato and his friends were part of the delinquent faction of the school, and it seemed they had to show up during lunch or after school. Now that they had reached this point, their freedom from this hell was almost guaranteed.
(TL/N: The aforementioned "delinquent faction" refers to a group of students who are involved in inappropriate behavior, often including bullying, violence, or rule-breaking at school).
However, if he lingered around the school or encountered Kawato and his friends after they were freed from their faction, it could become a problem. So as soon as the last class was over, Shiki always hurried home.
He managed to survive another day ── with a real feeling of relief in his heart.
Shiki's desire to live alone led him to choose a high school far from home during the entrance exams. He chose St. Lucimantz High School as a last resort because he heard rumors that if he submitted an application form, he could be admitted without taking the entrance exam.
Regardless of the truth or falsity of the rumors, it was a precautionary step he took to prepare for the worst-case scenario of being rejected by all of his preferred schools.
———
Shiki's accommodation was a typical one-bedroom apartment that could be found anywhere. It couldn't be described as spacious, but it gave him a strong feeling of being his own castle, more so than his own bedroom at home. Even now, after more than a year, he still liked it very much.
With light steps, Shiki left his castle behind.
He was dressed casually, not in his school uniform, but in a hoodie and jeans.
Yes, today was Sunday. Even though it was after eleven o'clock, it didn't matter and he didn't have to worry about Kawato and his friends.
Although he hadn't been able to make any friends due to the bullying, holidays that allowed him to avoid Kawato and his gang were undoubtedly heaven for Shiki.
On his way to the city center, he decided to choose his lunch spot based on the atmosphere, and after satisfying his hunger, Shiki continued his journey to buy the reserved video game. He walked along the streets with light steps.
When he reached the busy city center and walked along the main street, Shiki noticed that the line at a ramen restaurant that had caught his attention earlier was much shorter than usual.
He decided to have his lunch there, but then, "Ah, is that...!" The moment he saw Kawato and his entourage ahead of him on the street, Shiki was struck with a fear similar to having a knife at his throat, causing him to freeze in place.
However, if he stayed frozen, Kawato and his friends would notice him, so Shiki quickly escaped into an alley, trying to keep a calm facade as best he could.
Praying that they wouldn't notice him, Shiki went further into the alley and pulled up the hood of his hoodie, covering a part of his face.
Turning right at the next intersection, he hid behind the shadow of a building and made sure that Kawato and his friends were not coming towards them before he let out a long sigh.
Although it wasn't the first time that Shiki had seen Kawato and his friends in the same city, it always gave him the feeling that his time on earth was running out, just like now.
While there was the possibility to go to another city to avoid them, Shiki had no means of transportation and even if they took the train, it would be expensive, so they couldn't do it every time.
Spending her vacation alone in the apartment room wasn't a pleasant choice for Shiki, it only made him feel empty.
In reality, the chances of meeting them were incredibly small, smaller than the fingers on both hands, so Shiki thought there was no point in worrying too much, and that's why they went out... But meeting them like that made them feel as if their beautiful day had been ruined.
Maybe because of the stress, Shiki felt a twinge of pain in him stomach.
Of course, him appetite had completely disappeared, and he didn't feel like eating ramen in such a state.
Since it would be a disaster if they moved and ran into them unexpectedly, Shiki decided to stay at the intersection for a while.
Here, even if Kawato and his friends entered the alley, there were many exits they could take. That's why Shiki made this decision.
After a short look around, Shiki saw Kawato approaching from the entrance of the alley. Quickly, Shiki hid behind the shadow of a building.
When Shiki saw that Kawato also entered the alley at that moment, Shiki immediately tried to escape from the place. But when Shiki saw Kawato grab the hand of a girl and push her into the alley, Shiki stopped.
The girl's long black hair that reached down to her back looked like wet feathers and her face was so beautiful even from a distance. It was more appropriate to call her a beautiful woman than a beautiful girl.
From the difference in height between her and Kawato, Shiki could tell that the girl was slightly shorter than Shiki herself, around 160 centimeters. Together with her face, if someone said she was a magazine model, many people would easily believe it.
She was wearing a camisole dress in the same color as her hair, paired with a white shirt, and the outfit looked quite modest. However, the presence of her sufficiently large and prominent breasts under the clothing was enough to trigger dirty fantasies in people like Kawato.
At first glance, she appeared to be a college student, but...
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